2025 Virginia Beach Seafood Festival Recap
On November 1, 2026, Coastal Virginia Magazine hosted the Virginia Beach Seafood Festival benefitting the Virginia Gentleman Foundation at the State Military Reservation. A celebration of local seafood, music, and coastal community pride. Guests enjoyed signature dishes from local restaurants, refreshing beverages from Afterglow Brewing, Coastal Cocktails, Tarnished Truth, Beach Vodka and other delicious refreshments, [...]
Events Calendar January-February 2026
Dates and events are subject to change. Please visit the event website for the most up-to-date information. SPECIAL EVENTS Jan. 10-11: The Home Owners Expo Find all your homeowner needs under one roof. Meet with home improvement experts and get inspiration for your future projects. Chesapeake Conference Center. thehomeownersexpo.com Jan. 16-25: Virginia Beach Restaurant Week [...]
Chocolate
It’s What’s for Dinner! By Mikael Blido | Photos by Ashlee Glen If you think that chocolate is only for after dinner, think again! Chocolate in its many forms can be an excellent ingredient not only for sweet dishes but also for savory. In fact, many of the world’s cuisines take advantage of this versatile [...]
Two New Atlantic Park Restaurants Make Waves
By Marisa Marsey Atlantic Park, awash with entertainment options (notably a state-of-the-art surf park and The Dome, a reinvention of Virginia Beach’s bygone performance venue), recently welcomed two splashy new restaurants: Mexican-souled Mi Vida and The Grill, a next-gen steakhouse. Both belong to Knead Hospitality + Design, a James Beard-nominated firm known for cocooning customers [...]
Waterfront Views and Rising Responsibilities
Coastal Virginia homeowners must learn how to deal with an increasingly wet world By Eric Hause One of the advantages of living in Coastal Virginia is the prospect of owning waterfront property. With that prospect comes an understanding that waterfront today might be under water tomorrow. Rapidly accelerating sea level rise, increasingly violent weather events, [...]
2026 Top Lawyers Winners
Recognizing Local Attorneys that Raise the Bar Advertisers in this edition of CoVaBIZ Magazine have their firm names listed. Coastal Virginia Magazine’s Top Lawyers peer-to-peer survey has conducted polls in the legal field to identify the attorneys who exemplify excellence in their various fields. We’re proud to publish this list as a service to our readers, [...]
2026 Will Be a Year to Remember Via VA 250
Virginia’s story begins on the water In 2026, Coastal Virginia will take center stage as the Commonwealth commemorates 250 years of American independence. From the first landing at Cape Henry to the decisive victory at Yorktown, this region witnessed the moments that defined our nation’s founding. The VA250 celebration honors that legacy with a yearlong lineup [...]
When Someone Needs CPR, the Closest Person to Help Could Be You
In every cardiac emergency, the real first responder is not always a uniformed professional but often an everyday bystander. Cardiac arrest can strike anywhere—the gym, the grocery store, during a child’s soccer game. … You do not need medical credentials to save a life. What’s required is knowledge, courage, and readiness to act. By Butch [...]
The chilling truth about cold plunging
What you need to know before the big chill By Kristen De Deyn Kirk Standing over a horse trough in his backyard, Chuck Conley uses his heel as a pick. Tap … tap … SPLASH! He breaks through a thin layer of ice and slides into the water. “This must be done,” Conley, a Virginia [...]
LongevityDiets
How small, consistent choices—not fad diets—can help add years to your life and life to your years Longevity diet” sounds like a trend, but what it really describes is a way of eating that feels almost old-fashioned: simple meals, cooked at home, shared often, and built from foods your great-grandparents would recognize. As researchers look [...]
12 Ways toBe Well in 2026
By Cara Cullen Why Wellness Isn’t a Resolution—It’s a Rhythm January arrives with familiar energy—fresh planners, bold resolutions, and the hope that this will finally be the year we become our healthiest, happiest selves. But real wellness isn’t created by a calendar change; it’s built through consistent care, practiced all year long. That belief is [...]
A Fresh Cut for a Flourishing Garden
From hydrangeas to hollies, knowing what—and when—to prune can make all the difference. Local experts share how to snip your way to stronger, healthier plants. By Rachel Kester With just a few snips here and there, your landscape can transform into an abundant and vibrant paradise. Pruning is an essential garden technique that helps enhance [...]
A Fresh Startfor Ferns
Don’t overlook your evergreen ferns—early spring pruning and a little maintenance can help them stay lush, disease-free, and ready to thrive. By Rachel Kester Don’t let their beautiful year-round appearance fool you. While evergreen ferns might keep their color and personality even in the midst of winter, they still need some maintenance to ensure they [...]
Renaissance Come Lately
A husband and wife restored Tappahannock’s Essex Inn to glory— then turned a cross-street historic home into a flagship fine dinery. By Eric J. Wallace Pushing through the red, oversized front door of Tappahannock’s recently renovated Essex Inn is like stepping through a portal to a bygone era. The grand, Greek Revival style manor dates [...]
The Civic 50 Hampton Roads
Honoring Community-minded Companies in the Region In Partnership with VOLUNTEER Hampton Roads Since 2023, Coastal Virginia Magazineand CoVaBIZ have partnered withVOLUNTEER Hampton RoadsforThe Civic 50 Hampton Roads business recognition program. The Civic 50 is a national initiative established by Points of Light and honoring community-minded companies as determined by an annual survey administered by True Impact. This program is [...]
Current Scoop
Cold Splash a Cool Way to Warm Hearts with Cash Yes, it’s cold outside. And the water’s chillier. But this might be one of the cooler things you do. The 2026 Polar Plunge, in which participants go for the cold to help Special Olympics Virginia, supports 23,000-plus athletes of all abilities. The upcoming Polar Plunges [...]
5 to Try: Wine Bars
These local gathering spots invite you to taste and discover bottles and bites Article and Photo By Leona Baker What exactly is a wine bar, anyway? That depends on whom you ask, noted New York Times wine critic Eric Asimov in 2022 as he pontificated on the proliferation in the U.S. of these casual gathering [...]
A Look Back at a Television Prophecy
By Hannah Serrano Step into The Box at the Chrysler Museum of Art, and the room dissolves into a cascade of moving images. Screens flicker, sound pulses, and suddenly the world seems more alive, untamed, and unpredictable. This is Global Groove, Nam June Paik’s revolutionary 1973 video collage that is the centerpiece of Nam June [...]
Stoked on Virginia Beach
Local Surf Legend Jason Borte Celebrates Virginia Beach Surf Community in New Book Virginia is for Surfers By Chelsea Sherman / Photo above courtesy of Andrew Tonra The year was 1982. The spot? First Street at the Oceanfront. The swell? Subpar by most people’s standards. But to a 12-year-old Jason Borte, it was the start [...]
